Artists assistants work with, and often under direct instruction from, artists in the production or preparation of art works. Many famous and influential artist have worked with assistants including
Barbara Hepworth
Dame Jocelyn Barbara Hepworth (10 January 1903 – 20 May 1975) was an English artist and sculptor. Her work exemplifies Modernism and in particular modern sculpture. Along with artists such as Ben Nicholson and Naum Gabo, Hepworth was a leadi ...
and
David Hockney
David Hockney (born 9 July 1937) is an English painter, draftsman, printmaker, stage designer, and photographer. As an important contributor to the pop art movement of the 1960s, he is considered one of the most influential British artists o ...
Famous assistants
While the names of many artists assistants are never known, some artists assistants have become famous in their own right either as artists or for their role as assistants. One of the most famous is
Salaì
Gian Giacomo Caprotti da Oreno, better known as Salaì (1480 – January 19, 1524) was an Italian artist and pupil of Leonardo da Vinci from 1490 to 1518. Salaì entered Leonardo's household at the age of ten. He created paintings under the name ...
who was assistant and pupil of
Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci (15 April 14522 May 1519) was an Italian polymath of the High Renaissance who was active as a painter, Drawing, draughtsman, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor, and architect. While his fame initially res ...
.
Controversy
The use of artists assistants has been a controversial issue. The controversy primarily focuses on the assistants not being acknowledged for their work and questions of what constitutes art. David Hockney described
Damian Hirst's use of assistants as, "It's a little insulting to craftsmen, skilful craftsmen." This was in response to Hirst's use of assistants to paint his spot paintings. The contemporary artist
Jeff Koons
Jeffrey Lynn Koons (; born January 21, 1955) is an American artist recognized for his work dealing with popular culture and his sculptures depicting everyday objects, including balloon animals produced in stainless steel with mirror- finish su ...
uses assistants in a similar way, “I’m basically the idea person," he told an interviewer, "I’m not physically involved in the production. I don’t have the necessary abilities, so I go to the top people.”
There have also been exhibitions about the relationship between artist and assistant such as that at the New York gallery Luxembourg & Dayan which hosted ‘In the Making: Artists, Assistants, and Influence’ – a show tracing the link between artists and their (eventually famous) assistants in 2016
References
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Art history